A/N : I know this chapter is quite short, but I'm still quite proud of it. Thanx for all the reviews, I hope everyone likes this new chapter. To clules4eva, you had some great ideas, but not quite what I had in mind. To Leanne8582, here's one thing you've been waiting for and maybe next chapter you'll get the rest. To wolf116, wait and see. Just to let anyone who is interested know, I updated The Guy Next Door the other day but I don't think anyone saw it since Fanfiction.net was doing it's famously annoying overload thing. Anyway, please read and review this chapter and then maybe you could go and read and review The Guy Next Door! ; )

(For disclaimer, etc. - see chapter 1)

Chapter 16 - Humanity

"Bloody hell" Spike exclaimed, raising his head from the pillow for a better view of the man in the doorway "Angel?"

"Yeah, it's me" the vampire nodded, entering the room "Good to see you Spike"

"Never thought I'd live to hear you say that" Spike scoffed.

"Never thought you'd live" Angel smirked in response, causing a similar smirk on his former childe's face too.

"Good point" he conceded.

Buffy glanced between the two, her eyes catching Angel's just for a second. She was very uncomfortable with the situation and hated the fact that she didn't know what would happen next. Angel in her bedroom, she hadn't expected that to ever occur again, but with Spike there too - this was the stuff that very weird dreams / bordering on nightmares were made of.

"Angel came to...to..." she stuttered and the man himself saved her.

"That doesn't matter right now" Angel shook his head, coming to stand the opposite side of the bed to her "Buffy told me what happened, everything you did" he said to Spike.

"Yeah?" the bleach blond replied, warily.

"What can I say?" the brunette shrugged, completely at a loss and Buffy realised her presence was only making everything more difficult. She picked up the tray from the table and stood quickly, once again catching a look from Angel as she glanced at him.

"I'll take this downstairs..." she trailed off, almost physically running for the open door, leaving the former sire and childe alone. She wasn't sure if it was a good move or not, but she felt so strange sitting there between them so uncomfortable, she just had to get out.

Back in the bedroom, Angel took a seat in the chair to the right of Spike as he lie on the bed, eyes half closed.

"So, how are you feeling?"

"Like death, ironically" Spike smirked his usual smirk, opening his eyes properly "You?"

"I'm fine, well, as fine as usual" Angel nodded before the room plunged into silence, neither really knowing what to say to the other. It had been a long time and they wee both such different people now, what was there to say.

"So..." Spike started but soon realised he had thing to follow up with.

"So..." Angel echoed "you and Buffy" he said finally, immediately regretting it but it was too late to take it back now.

"Yeah" Spike nodded looking intently at the vampire he had called a friend, an enemy and a grand-sire "what do you have to say about that?"

There was a moment of silence as Angel seemed to ponder the question, studying his hands, not daring to look at Spike as he gave his answer.

"If she's happy, I'm happy" he said finally.

"Bollocks" Spike laughed, only causing himself to cough, harshly.

"Excuse me?" said Angel in disbelief.

"You heard me" Spike nodded as his coughing fit subsided "I saw the look" he sneered.

"What look?" Angel asked, not half as naive as he pretended to be.

"The look you two had" Spike would have yelled, except he didn't want to wake the whole house "the look you two *always* have..." he turned his head away as he continued "Watcher tells me I'm gonna live through this, now you're back, wonder if there's any point"

"What are you talking about?" Angel asked, though he had an idea what the man meant, he couldn't believe he was saying it.

"Doesn't really matter what happens to me" Spike said sadly "She'll always have you to run too. She'll always love you" the last few words were no more than a whisper, but Angel heard every one and sighed as he took them in.

"Yeah, maybe she will" he admitted "and I know I'll always love her too, but Spike it's you she chose"

"She didn't choose me" he snapped, looking back at the brunette he had come to despise "she got stuck with me, when she couldn't have you" with that he turned away again, as much as he was able and Angel shook his head.

"You believe that?"

"I don't know..." Spike realised, he didn't know what he meant anymore. He turned back yet again "What are you doing here, Peaches?" he wondered aloud, realising the poof had yet to give him an actual reason for a visit.

"You know you'd think humanity would make you more civil" Angel avoided the question, focusing on the insulting name Spike had thrown at him...again.

"I can be civil" the blonde bit back "just cause I'm human doesn't mean I have to be a ponce like you though, does it?"

"Spike..." Angel sighed in annoyance.

"Say whatever it is you came to say you stupid poof and then get the hell out" Spike said, almost growling, he certainly would have growled if had still been a vamp, as it was he still sounded menacing.

"Y'know what Spike" Angel stood up "I thought you'd changed, and I guess in some ways you have, but there's still that part of you" he pointed a finger "you just can't let yourself be satisfied can you?"

Spike only glared in response, not sure how to verbally react and wishing he wasn't too weak to stand because he really would love to be pummelling the great poofter into a bloody pulp right now, for more than one reason.

"You've got your humanity back" Angel said incredulously "I'll probably never get that, how ever much I want it, you have friends who love you like a family, you have saved the world and lived through it and now, on top of all that, you have the woman you love" Spike opened his mouth to defend himself but he wasn't allowed "what more do you want, William?" Angel added quietly and with a swoosh of black coat he was gone from the room.

Spike just stared after his former grand-sire.

Was Angel right?

Should he be content now?

But how could he be when he was so uncertain.

Buffy said she loved him and he wanted to believe it, but what about Angel?

What Buffy and Angel had before, that was something different, something special and he knew it.

Human or not, how could he ever compete with that?

To Be Continued...